04-11-1998 News Release 98/44

Years of fighting between Sri Lankan government troops and the forces of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam have drastically reduced the amount of drinking water available to the Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim communities living on the east coast.

The first phase of a water supply project launched by the ICRC has now been completed with the help of the Austrian Red Cross. The 123,000 US dollar programme is aimed at restoring access to safe water for 6,000 families living in the conflict areas of Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara Districts.

In view of the favourable impact of the project, the ICRC delegation in Sri Lanka plans to continue the work in 1999.